Are they right? Well, psychologists tell us that rallying around the authoritarian leader is actually a very infantile way to affirm one's masculinity.
Okay, listen up guys. Real men don't bluster like George W. Bush or Bill O'Reilly. Real men stand up to fascists.
Our forefathers stood up to the British king and fought for our freedom. Our forefathers stood up to tyrants and won their liberty and freedom.
Come on, buddy . . . stop posing. And start acting like a real man.
"If you're really a patriot, you will defend the constitution. If you're a coward, you'll defend the elite who want to subvert it. Real men stand up to fascism. Cowardly men become boot lickers."
- Chris D
"Most Americans aren't the sort of citizens the Founding Fathers expected; they are contented serfs. Far from being active critics of government, they assume that its might makes it right."
- Joseph Sobran
Note: Of course, real women stand up to fascists, also. And I welcome women to write about why they are standing up to the strong men.
Moreover, it is not a question of how much testosterone or estrogen one has in one's body. Instead, I believe it is a question of how much one cares.
This essay focuses solely on men who lack confidence, and who fall for a "quick fix" for their insecurities, because they are the ones who tend to rally around authoritarians. Women who are confident in their femininity don't tend to fall for the authoritarian trap, and so this essay does not address them.